REVIEW: Shame – Songs of Praise

Although many of the prominent acts which spearheaded the post-punk revival in the early ‘00s were from New York, the last few years have seen the sound realign itself to London, which was perhaps always the genre’s spiritual home. As the bands which defined indie rock 15 years ago continue to sound (and become) more radio-friendly and overproduced, recent years have seen the rise of new noisier London acts such as Idles and Savages, at times essentially a backlash to their predecessors American and British alike. Now, more than 16 years after the release of Is This It, the post-punk revival has instead become defined by such sounds.

The first album from South London quintet Shame, Songs of Praise, feels like the natural progression post-punk would’ve taken had the sound stayed in England two decades ago. While the band prominently showcases their punk roots, the styles which post-punk evolved into and influenced throughout the 1990s also seep through. On Songs of Praise, there are elements of Madchester-era psych-rock, as well as bits of Britpop, noise rock and D.C. post-hardcore. The result is an fantastic, cohesive work that shows potential for the band to evolve into the next great act of the South London scene.

Of course, it’s not the sheer combination of all of these influences that makes Songs of Praise such an engaging album, but rather Shame’s ability to craft great songs out of them together. In part, this is due to frontman Charlie Steen’s witty lyricism and emotive vocal delivery, in which he frequently seems to alternate between stylistic imitations of Mark E Smith and the Gallagher brothers. Steen’s lyrics get right to the point: he openly admits on “One Rizla” to being a piece of shit, coming from shit and having a voice that sounds like shit (and not caring about any of that in the first place), then gives a stream-of-conscious account of his most recent trip to the gynaecologist on “The Lick”. Much like the great punk albums it is drawn from, the lyrics throughout Songs of Praise paint a hopeless and dreary picture of England, it’s politics and the people within it. In this sense, even with their musical deviations, Shame is a punk band above anything else.

But a great frontman would be nothing without the backing of a great band. The rest of the members of Shame prove their skill just as much, if not more, throughout Songs of Praise. The band plays loud and keeps their energy throughout points of every track, but also gives Steen his space on most of the verses. Due to this, the album rarely sounds cluttered or overwhelming, instead finding a balance uplifting guitar pop and loud, biting noise. Guitarists Sean Coyle-Smith and Eddie Green craft incredible melodies, often reminiscent of Sonic Youth or The Stone Roses, which keep every track on the album memorable and enjoyable, while drummer Charlie Forbes and bassist Josh Finerty give an amount of ferocity and energy that have become rare in rock music since the end of the grunge movement.

For a debut, Songs of Praise shows a great amount of focus and potential. The band have already made a name for themselves in England over the last few years with their energetic live shows, and with that same energy carried over into this album it will be exciting to see how their sound – and perhaps the sound of British guitar music as a whole – will evolve in the future.

Songs of Praise is out now on Dead Oceans. Buy it or stream it on your prefered platform here.

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